PORTLAND, Ore. — This story comes from the Portland Business Journal, a KGW News partner. The full story is here .

Pacific University and Willamette University said Thursday morning they’re exploring the strategy that would make the entity Oregon’s largest private university. Tentatively, the school would be called the University of the Northwest.

The two sides have “signed a letter of intent agreeing to move forward with due diligence and the negotiation of a definitive agreement to merge,” officials said. It would host 6,000 students who’d get access to well-rounded curricula. Pacific is known for its health care and education programs while Willamette’s MBA and law school are well-regarded.

Pacific, in Forest Grove, is Oregon’s ninth-largest college, with 3,200-plus students as of

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